Press releases

  • Surgeons warn NHS capacity remains the real risk as waiting times target approaches

    16 Apr 2026 With data due to be published next month revealing whether the NHS has met the interim target of 65% of patients starting treatment within 18 weeks by March 2026, the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) has warned that progress on NHS waiting times remains fragile without sustained investment in surgical capacity.

  • More than a third of medical references generated by some AI platforms may be fabricated, new study finds

    14 Apr 2026 More than a third of medical references generated by some widely used artificial intelligence (AI) platforms may be fabricated, according to a new study published in The Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

  • Public satisfaction with the NHS and social care in 2025: RCS England response

    25 Mar 2026 Responding to the Public satisfaction with the NHS and social care in 2025 report from The King’s Fund and Nuffield Trust, Mr Tim Mitchell, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England), said: “For 45% of respondents, improving waiting times for planned operations remains a top priority – a clear sign patients are still waiting too long for the care they need.

  • Wales falling behind on surgical hubs as waiting lists reduce too slowly, surgeons warn

    20 Mar 2026 New Senedd Election manifesto from surgeons urges next Welsh Government to expand surgical capacity and deliver a long-term workforce plan With new NHS Wales waiting time figures out yesterday, surgeons warn that Wales risks slipping further behind the rest of the UK unless progress on surgical hubs and workforce growth accelerates.

  • Surgeons respond to latest waiting times data in Northern Ireland

    04 Mar 2026 Surgeons say the latest waiting times data in Northern Ireland show welcome progress, but transparency is needed on whether increased surgical activity is driving these reductions.

  • Just 6% of surgeons working in private healthcare are women, new research shows

    02 Mar 2026 New research published in The Bulletin of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) has found that women make up just 6.2% of surgeons working across the UK’s five largest private hospital groups, compared with 16.9% in the NHS.

  • A child’s tooth is extracted every 15 minutes, new figures reveal

    17 Feb 2026 New figures released today show that 33,976 tooth extractions were carried out in children in 2025 due to tooth decay. This equates to a young person, aged between 0 and 19, needing a tooth extraction due to tooth decay, likely under general anaesthetic, every 15 minutes. This is an 11% increase on last year’s numbers.

  • Response to National Lung Cancer Audit

    12 Feb 2026 Results from the National Lung Cancer Audit (NLCA) in England and Wales have been published today by the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre (NATCAN). The findings demonstrate improvements in early diagnosis across England and Wales but also highlight delays to treatment and ongoing variation in access to care.

  • Surgeons: NHS cannot cut waits without rebuilding surgical capacity

    12 Feb 2026 The latest NHS consultant-led referral-to-treatment (RTT) data shows that the total waiting list decreased to 7.29 million in December 2025. In the final month of last year, the NHS came under sustained pressure, with flu and norovirus cases reaching exceptionally high levels.

  • RCS England response to The General Medical Council v James Gilbert & Anor [2026]

    06 Feb 2026 Responding, Professor Vivien Lees, Senior Vice-President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England), said: “Staff targeted by James Gilbert’s behaviour will feel disappointed by today’s Court of Appeal judgment. Erasure from the medical register must always remain a potential outcome for unacceptable behaviours, including sexual misconduct."

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